obscurechars10

Welcome to Round X of Obscure DCU Characters. This thread serves as a Q&A forum focusing on DC's many obscure heroes and villains. Rounds I through IX have been archived at www.infiniteearths.org/dcu/msgboards and are available for download. If you're new to this topic, take a few moments to check out those previous threads. The Obscure DCU Characters list now stands at 884 characters. Those entries that have yet to be covered are marked with an asterisk. 498 have been covered, 386 left to go!

From May 2000 through May 2005, a number of fans posted such information on
the DC Message Boards. At that time, I had archived all those
posts and hosted them on a Yahoo site. I have just completed
moving them over to Google Sites. Here is the new link:

If anyone wants to start up "Obscure Characters - Round X" here, I'd be
happy to keep archiving the data at the Google Site. I had gotten
through about 80% of the Charlton characters in Round IX, so I would
finish that off. Mikishawm, if you are reading this, I might also
be interested in covering both Camelot and the Olympian gods, but I'd
need your help with coming up with a checklist of appearances from which
I could start.

Hope you all find the posts entertaining.

Osgood PeabodyMember

posted February 16, 2013 03:49 PM

Thanks for resurrecting this, outpost!

I remember following these threads back in the day. Hopefully when John is done working on the next 60s American Chronicle book, we can coax him back over here to do another round.

Outpost2Member

posted February 21, 2013 12:31 AM

For old time's sake, I started working on a few (not so) obscure entries: Vandal Savage and the Earth-Two Mxyztplk. In order to finish Vandal Savage, I need some help. There are a few references on the web about prior identities that Savage had used and people that he had advised, but I can't find any proof in any of the comics I've read through.

Is there any story where Savage claimed to be: Alexander the Great? Merlin? Vlad the Impaler?

Is there any story where Savage claimed to have advised: Erik the Red? Adolf Hitler? Ra's al Ghul?

Thanks in advance.

PerseusMember

posted February 21, 2013 02:43 AM

Is Ghost Patrol (Earth 2) obscure? I have them in Archives.

Outpost2Member

posted February 21, 2013 03:45 PM

Ghost Patrol is on the list and has not been covered. A quick search at the GCD says they appeared in:

Taxi driver Doiby Dickles drops a strange man off at a swank Park Avenue club. Surprisingly, the man claims his name is D. Dickles. Soon after, Doiby is attacked by a group of thugs. Green Lantern rescues Doiby, then they head to the club and confront the stranger. The man reveals that his name is Vandal Savage, and that he read the driver's name off of the taxi license in order to provoke a mystery which would bring Green Lantern to him. He wants to hire the hero's services to find a man named Alan Scott. Green Lantern says his services are not for sale, but that he will get word to Mr. Scott.

The next day, Alan Scott (a.k.a. Green Lantern) visits the Wall Street offices of Vandal Savage. Savage tells Alan that he wants to purchase the contents of his safe deposit box at the Wheat Exchange Bank. Alan declines his offer and leaves. That night, Green Lantern and Doiby Dickles confront crooks that have broken into the Wheat Exchange Bank. An explosion of nitroglycerin causes a heavy wooden beam to knock the duo out for a few minutes. When they awaken, they discover that Alan Scott's box has been taken. Green Lantern tells Doiby that he has outsmarted Vandal Savage, because he took the precaution of removing the contents of the box that afternoon. However, when the two men return to Alan's apartment, they find that it has been ransacked. The stocks he had taken from the box, 100 shares of Consolidated Steel, are gone.

The following morning, the two men speed to the Stock Exchange to find out why Savage stole shares of stock worth a mere $50. Savage's men try to stop the duo from reaching the villain, but Savage abruptly ends the fight. Savage hands the stocks back to Alan, telling him it was all a horrible misunderstanding. He claims that his men met up with some thieves who had stolen the stocks from him, and that he is glad to return them. After the two bewildered men leave the stock exchange floor, Alan notices the news on the ticker tape. It reads: "After a two-month deadlock, Vandal Savage was elected Chairman of Consolidated Steel this morning by a margin of 100 votes through 100 shares of stock that mysteriously turned up...". The duo head to the steel plant in the heart of Pennsylvania.

The two men pose as full-fledged foundrymen for three days, waiting for a lead. Alan tells Doiby that the factory is a key plant in the American war industry. As the day shift makes way for the incoming night crew, Doiby spots Savage's men. Shortly after, Green Lantern and Doiby arrive and stop the men from destroying the plant. Although it appears as if Savage is going to finish off the heroes, he instead helps them. Savage says they have already defeated the saboteurs, and that he has called in the police. After the thugs are taken away, Savage offers to give the two men a lift home, so they can talk over the case and clear up some misunderstandings. The duo accepts, but as they enter Savage's car, he knocks both of them out with a heavy wooden club.

When they awaken, the heroes find they are bound to two chairs. Savage warns Green Lantern that if he moves, a switch will be released, electrocuting his friend. The villain says that he knows all about Green Lantern's powers and weaknesses, and even knows that the hero is really Alan Scott. He has been watching the hero for some time, and was able to use logic to deduce his true identity. Green Lantern asks the villain who he really is. Savage says it has been quite a long time since he has told his tale, so he agrees to tell it once again.

Vandal Savage begins by claiming he is over a million years old! In the year 1,000,000 BC, he was a man 40 summers old, chieftain of a tribe of Cro-Magnon men. While leading a hunting party, he was suddenly aware of a fire-ball thundering out of the skies. With a titanic explosion, the flaming meteor burst over his head, engulfing him in fiery gas. For 10 months, his tribesmen watched over his still body, until he finally awakened. Year after year passed. He outlived all his people. After a hundred years without aging, he concluded that the flames from the skies had given him eternal life. He would never grow old and, barring accidents, he would never die. With eternal life, his knowledge and power grew. He was the great Egyptian pharaoh, Cheops, who built the pyramids [26th century BC]. He was Julius Caesar, who turned Rome into a conquering kingdom (contrary to recorded history, Brutus' assassination failed) [1st century BC]. He was Genghis Khan, leader of plundering hoards [13th century AD]. Then he realized that there was too much danger in prominence, for he could still be killed accidentally, so he became a power behind history's scenes. As Sir Vandal Savage, he councilled Duke William (a.k.a. William the Conqueror) to attack England [11th century AD]. As King Philip's advisor, Señor Savage, he led the Spanish armada against Drake (when Philip says the battle goes badly, Savage tells him that he has taken England twice before and will do it again) [16th century AD]. As Napoleon's aide, Marshall Sauvage, he planned great victories [early 19th century AD]. As Baron von Savage, it was he who led Prince Bismarck to his victory over France [mid/late 19th century AD].

Now, after a million years, he is bored. The only thing that amuses him is the chess game of power. That is why he has decided that the United States must lose the war. For in a dictatorship, he shall be able to play with power as he never could in a democracy. He has told Green Lantern these things merely to warn him. Savage let the hero live because Green Lantern assumes him. Savage tells the hero that he is helpless. If Green Lantern makes one move against him, Savage will reveal his secret. Savage leaves, telling both men to forget they ever met him. A moment later, the lights come on, revealing that they have been in Alan Scott's apartment the whole time. Savage had set up some kind of movie camera. Even the electric chair was a clever illusion. Green Lantern tells Doiby that they will fight Savage, but he doesn't know how.

The following day, Alan Scott reads the latest news on the radio. From Washington: "The War Department has just issued the following announcement: Due to his fine work in ending sabotage at the Consolidated Steel works, Vandal Savage has been appointed War Labor Chief of the entire country. He will be instated before the Senate at noon today". Alan and Doiby grab the next train to Washington. A few hours later, at 10 o'clock, the two men arrive at their destination. They grab a taxi, but are forced to share it with another man... Vandal Savage! Savage states that his friendly warning has done no good, so he'll have to dispose of them both. Minutes later, the taxi arrives at the Capitol building. Alan and Doiby take refuge in a sight-seeing bus, so they can talk things over. They keep seeing Savage's men everywhere. They evade them at the Lincoln Memorial, but are attacked atop the Washington Monument. After Doiby stops their attacker, he questions why the thug attacked him instead of Alan. Alan realizes that Doiby alone stands in Savage's way. Savage wasn't joking when he called himself D. Dickles back at the Park Avenue club. He had to have a birth certificate to hold a war job. He stole Doiby's! Alan becomes Green Lantern and flies Doiby back to Keystone City. He now knows how to stop Vandal Savage. After a quick visit to the Hall of Records, the two heroes race back to the Capitol building.

Vandal Savage is presented to the Senate for instatement. He explains to the Senators that although he was born Dickles, he had to change his name for business purposes. Dickles is hardly a name for a financier. Suddenly, Green Lantern and Doiby Dickles burst in, calling Savage a fraud. Green Lantern presents full photostatic evidence to the Senate. The papers show a photo of Dickles attached to his birth certificate and taxi license. When Savage threatens to expose Green Lantern's secret to the world, the hero tells him to go ahead, but he warns Savage that he is prepared to pin plenty on him... enough to probably get the villain life imprisonment! He tells Savage to think about that before blabbing his secret. Savage falters as the full hideous meaning of Green Lantern's words dawn on him. He races out of the building. Doiby wants to follow, but Green Lantern stops his friend. The hero explains that he wants to locate Savage's real hide-out, the place he's been using for all these centuries.

Green Lantern and Doiby cautiously trail Savage, following him miles southward across the rolling Virginia countryside. Later, in the rugged hills of Kentucky, they discover Savage's hide-out in Mammoth Caves. Within the cave, they confront Savage. The villain threatens violence, but Green Lantern freezes him with his power ring. Savage suddenly shouts with all the power in his lungs, causing stalactites to fall from the cave ceiling. Savage is able to escape into the darkness. When the heroes follow, they stumble down into a secret entrance to a subterranean hideaway. Savage has a machine gun pointed at them, proclaiming that his hideout has had no visitors in half a million years. He warns Green Lantern to keep his ring pointed at the ground. Savage regrets that he must kill them, for they've removed his eternal boredom for a few days, but they must die! As Savage's finger tightens on the trigger, a bolt of green light drives downward from Green Lantern's power ring, drilling underneath the villain, causing him to fall into a bottomless cavern. Doiby is surprised that the power ring could cut through solid rock so quickly, but Green Lantern explains that it is magnetite... pure iron. The duo head home, leaving Vandal Savage to his fate.

Note 1: Vandal Savage claims to be one million years old. He is stated to be a Cro-Magnon, which should make him no more than 45,000 years old. However, later stories would state he is approximately 50,000 years old.
Note 2: This story claims that Vandal Savage was the Pharaoh Cheops [26th century BC], Julius Caesar [1st century BC], and Genghis Khan [13th century AD]. It also claims that he aided Duke William (a.k.a. William the Conqueror) as Sir Vandal Savage [11th century AD], he aided King Philip as Señor Savage [16th century AD], he aided Napoleon as Marshal Sauvage (spelled here as "Marshall") [early 19th century AD], and he aided Prince Bismarck as Baron von Savage [mid/late 19th century AD].
Note 3: Vandal Savage's timeline regarding Genghis Khan and William the Conqueror is contradictory, so it is unclear exactly when he decided to take a less active role in his battles, but it was likely in the 11th century or earlier. Other Earth-Two stories involving Genghis Khan strongly suggest that Savage only replaced the real Genghis Khan temporarily.

The Wizard, Degaton, the Brain Wave, Vandal Savage, the Gambler, and the Thinker form the Injustice Society of the World. They battle the Justice Society with the ultimate goal of taking over the whole country. Hawkman confronts Vandal Savage, referring to him as "the man who is a million years old". When the hero tries to punch Savage, the villain disappears. Later, Savage imprisons Hawkman in a metal cage, created by a metal projector invented by Brain Wave. The villain explains that the last time they met, he was just an image projected on a tree. The Injustice Society captures the Justice Society, but they are soon defeated and brought to justice.

Note 1: This story repeats the claim that Vandal Savage is one million years old.

*************************************

FLASH #137 (June 1963)
"Vengeance Of The Immortal Villain!"

Mysterious sky-lights above Washington D.C. disrupt all power within a ten-mile radius, the same as has happened in five other cities over the past week. These include Gotham City and Calvin City. In Central City, Barry Allen tells Iris that each of the cities ring a bell, but he can't understand why. Later, Barry remembers that the cities are where various members of the Justice Society resided on Earth-Two. Barry becomes the Flash and vibrates his way to Keystone City on Earth-Two, then heads to the home of Jay Garrick, the Flash of that world. Jay has just returned from the six cities, and declares that his old JSA buddies have disappeared. Suddenly, the sky-lights appear above Keystone City. The two Flashes search for the device emitting the light. Jay finds it on a side road some miles outside of the city, but when he tries to turn it off, another machine shoots a beam which forms a solid cube around him. Barry arrives as the cube rises from the ground. He chases his friend and eventually succeeds in freeing him by destroying the cube.

Meanwhile, in a hideout under Mammoth Caves in Kentucky, Vandal Savage wonders where the cube containing the Flash could be. He is surrounded by cubes containing Dr. Mid-Nite, Wonder Woman, Hawkman, Atom, Johnny Thunder, and Green Lantern. The cubes were invented by his old ally, Brain Wave. Savage comments that it was easy to draw the Justice Society members out of retirement using the threat of his sky-lights. Sixteen years earlier, the Justice Society had captured and imprisoned the Injustice Society. Savage has escaped jail and has begun his revenge. He thought the cubes were inescapable, but his instruments now show that the one that held the Flash has been destroyed. Since he has failed to capture the Flash by remote control, he must go out and do it personally.

Vandal Savage's flying laboratory takes to the sky, towards the sky-lights machine outside of Keystone City. He spots Jay Garrick near the device, and shoots him with a heavy-ray beam, an invention of the Thinker. Savage is surprised when another Flash arrives to help. The villain reverses the controls on his ray-machine, shooting Barry Allen with a beam that causes the hero to float into the air. Using specially treated cables, Savage tows the two Flashes to his hideout. However, before he reaches his destination, the heroes vibrate the cables and cause the lab plane to plunge to the ground. As the Flashes use the ray-machine to cancel out the effects of the device, Vandal Savage escapes.

The new uniform which Savage has invented enables him to fly back to his base, but he is aware that Jay Garrick knows where his hideout is located. Savage locates an invention of Degaton's that he has modified. Originally it merely paralyzed the will, now it will allow him to control the will. When the Flashes arrive, he uses the will-controller to direct them to fight each other. Barry eventually triumphs over Jay, then leaves to search for Savage. As Savage puts Jay in a cube, he sees Barry vibrate himself into invisibility. Savage had anticipated that and sets a trap. When the invisible Barry returns and races towards Savage, the hero realizes it is just an image. He suddenly stops and avoids being trapped in a cube. Savage believes he has caught the invisible hero, but soon finds himself surrounded by Barry and the entire Justice Society. While the two Flashes take Vandal Savage back to prison, the remaining heroes decide to come out of retirement every so often and hold meetings to prevent anything like this from happening again.

Note 1: It has been 16 years since the Injustice Society was imprisoned.
Note 2: This story establishes Vandal Savage's origin as having occurred 50,000 years ago, repeats that he is a Cro-Magnon, and reveals that his original name was Vandar Adg.
Note 3: This story repeats the claims that Vandal Savage was Pharaoh Cheops and Genghis Khan, and adds that he was a king of ancient Sumer. It also repeats the claims that he aided Napoleon as Marshal Sauvage (now spelled with one "l") and aided Bismarck as Baron von Savage.

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FLASH #215 (May 1972)
"Death Of An Immortal!"

Barry Allen wakes up and prepares to keep an appointment to accept the Mayor's Good Citizen Award as the Flash. He discovers that his costume is missing, then realizes that he is in the home of Jay and Joan Garrick on Earth-Two. Joan states that Jay was going to accept the Mayor's Good Citizen Award this morning on their Earth. Barry puts on Jay's costume and accepts the award posing as Earth-Two's Flash. Barry then saves an old man from being hit by a truck, but soon discovers that the man stepped in front of the truck on purpose.

Barry returns with the man to his apartment, who introduces himself as Dalvan, a student of the black arts. Dalvan knows that the Flash is a fraud, because the prior night he saw his Earth's Flash in Limbo using his mystic crystal ball. The old man surprises Barry by handing him his costume, then casts a spell which opens a gateway for Barry to enter Limbo.

Somehow, Barry is attuned to Jay's own super-aura, leading him to his friend like a homing beacon. He finds Jay, alive but unconscious. Jay wakes up and tells Barry that the fate of his world depends on his success in Limbo. Jay explains that somewhere in Limbo, an extra-special meteor runs rampant. Unless he can find it and deflect its course back into reality, his Earth is doomed. Jay has no idea what the meteor is supposed to do, nor does he know how he even knows about the doom.

Meanwhile, back in the apartment, Dalvan drops his disguise, revealing himself to be Vandal Savage. He needs the meteor, otherwise he will die. He sent Jay Garrick into Limbo and implanted the "doomed Earth" thought in his mind. He states that he miscalculated with respect to his immortality. Although he is exceedingly long lived, he is far from immortal. He has already acquired gray hair and wrinkles, and unless he bathes in the radiation of that ages-old fireball once more, his spark will soon be extinguished. Using scientific devices created by his fellow Injustice Society members, Savage learned that the meteor did not explode. An atmospheric disturbance shifted it into Limbo. Using the Society's mind-control device, he convinced a sleeping Flash that the fate of the Earth depended on his bringing that meteor out of Limbo. When Flash's super-speed proved unequal to the task, Savage shifted Jay Garrick's counterpart to their world so that he could help complete the task.

In Limbo, the two Flashes spot the flaming meteor. Jay warns Barry to keep his distance. When Jay tried to touch it, its radiations knocked him out cold. The two heroes race ahead of the meteor and work together to create a backwash, which draws the fireball towards them. Jay explains that the meteor had to achieve a certain velocity to be thrust into Limbo, so if they can get it to reach that speed again they can set it free. The heroes succeed in sending it back into Earth's reality, but they hit a barrier and are knocked unconscious when they try to escape themselves. Vandal Savage has closed the gateway, and gladly leaves them to their fate. The villain then exits the apartment so he can wait for the meteor's arrival.

The two unconscious Flashes are swept into a stream of sparkling energy. They float and tumble until they are finally rescued by Tempus, the Guardian of the Time-Stream. It is Tempus' task to keep anyone from traveling the time-stream, lest they be lost forever. The two heroes soon overpower the guardian. Tempus tells them that they are the first ever to defeat him, and that they have won the right to travel the time-stream. The two Flashes race forward to the end of time, which then circles back to the beginning. As they near the point when they first entered Limbo, they see images of Vandal Savage and his plans. First Jay is transported back to reality, then Barry.

As Vandal Savage waits for the arrival of the meteor, the two Flashes show up. A steel-mesh net springs out of the ground, pinning the heroes down. Moments later, the meteor can be seen in the sky. At first, the villain awaits the meteor with great anticipation, but he soon realizes that the fireball is heading straight for him and it isn't going to stop. The meteor strikes the ground with immense force, spewing mud and flame everywhere. When the smoke disperses, the two Flashes find no trace of Savage. The meteor hit the exact spot that the villain was standing on. Jay remarks that the explosion would have finished them too if they hadn't vibrated most of the explosion's force through them. He finds it ironic that if it hadn't been for the atmospheric disturbance millennia ago, the meteor would have hit Earth then. Vandal Savage waited 50,000 years for death to catch up with him. Barry wonders if Savage really is dead, or if he will rise again like a phoenix.

Note 1: This story repeats the fact that Vandal Savage was a 50,000 year old Cro-Magnon named Vandar Adg.
Note 2: This story repeats the claims that Vandal Savage was a king of ancient Sumer, Pharaoh Cheops, and Genghis Khan. It also repeats the claims that he aided Napoleon and Bismarck.
Note 3: Vandal Savage is beginning to age in this story. He appears to die while attempting to renew his powers.

*************************************

FLASH #235 (Aug 1975)
"Vandal Savage -- Wanted Dead And Alive!"

In Central City, Barry Allen races home to find dinner waiting for him. He calls for his wife, Iris, to come out of the kitchen and join him. Suddenly, an explosion in the kitchen blows the kitchen door off its hinges. Standing in the doorway is Vandal Savage, who Barry believed was dead. Savage says he prefers to discuss things with Barry in uniform. The villain activates Barry's Flash ring simply by pointing at it. After Barry dons his Flash costume, Savage tells him that Iris is out of his life and out of his world forever. Barry races around Savage at super-speed, but the villain is able to reach out and grab his arm, causing him to suffer a super-speed overload. Barry suddenly awakens at the dinner table. An image of Savage forms in Barry's mind. The villain speaks to Barry, telling him that their battle was a mental projection, but that his wife's disappearance is real.

In Coast City, Hal Jordan leaves Carol Ferris at her deluxe apartment, but then returns to tell her about theatre tickets he acquired. When the door opens, it is Vandal Savage who stands before him. The villain points at Hal, causing his Green Lantern uniform to appear on his body. Hal notices that Carol is missing, and he uses his ring to force Savage to tell him the truth. Savage states that the truth is he'll never see Carol Ferris again. The villain then uses Green Lantern's own emerald energy against him.

The next day, in Keystone City on Earth-Two, Jay Garrick stops some drug smugglers. Barry and Hal arrive and discuss their encounters with Vandal Savage. Jay explains that they were mistaken when they thought Savage was killed during their last battle. The villain had been turned into a formless ghost on Earth-Two, but evidently he regains his form when he visits Earth-One. Jay figures that Savage was vibrating into Earth-One when the fireball struck him on Earth-Two, allowing half of his life-essence to survive. Jay apologizes that he can't return with them to Earth-One, because he's in the middle of his own urgent crisis.

After Barry and Hal arrive on Earth-One, each sees an image of their loved one begging them for help. Suddenly, they hear the voice of Vandal Savage, telling them that he lured the heroes to him. Barry and Hal see a fireball, similar to the one that "killed" Savage, hanging in the air. Savage explains that he has the women trapped inside, and their oxygen is running out. The heroes try various things to extinguish the fireball and free their loved ones, but nothing works. Hal breaks through Savage's super-evolved mental defenses and discovers him hiding behind a tree. Hal uses his ring to force Savage to provide answers. Savage explains that he found out that the fireball on Earth-One could make him immortal, but only if charged with two forms of energy... Green Lantern's power beam and Flash's super-speed aura. He lured them both to the fireball, using Iris and Carol as bait. Barry has no problem extinguishing the fireball now that Savage's mental powers no longer shield it. However, he discovers that the hollow shell only contains Carol; there is no sign of Iris. Once more, Hal's ring forces Savage to confess the truth. He had planned to kidnap Iris, but she was already gone when he arrived, so he decided to bluff to assure the success of his scheme.

On Earth-Two, Jay Garrick has Iris with him, claiming Barry can never see his wife again! (The subsequent two issues reveal that Jay and Dr. Fate were trying to protect Earth-One from a deadly plan created by Professor Zoom.)

Note 1: It is revealed that Vandal Savage survived his previous appearance by vibrating to Earth-One.

*************************************

ALL-STAR COMICS #63 (Nov-Dec 1976)
"The Death Of Doctor Fate"

Vandal Savage appears in the shadows, with other members of the Injustice Society.

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ALL-STAR COMICS #64 (Jan-Feb 1977)
"Yesterday Begins Today!"

Green Lantern brings the Shining Knight to meet with other members of the Justice Society at JSA Headquarters. The Knight warns them that someone is altering history. For instance, Camelot is being attacked by the Roman Empire. Merlin has seen other omens as well, and summoned the Knight through the veil of time. The heroes must halt the plot, or they may cease to exist. Superman, Power Girl, Flash, and the Star-Spangled Kid travel back to the 6th century with the Shining Knight.

The heroes arrive at Camelot and appear before King Arthur and Merlin, then head out to confront the Roman army. A curtain parts, revealing a viewscreen upon which Arthur and Merlin will watch the battle. When the heroes discover that the Roman soldiers are really robots, they realize that Merlin has pulled a hoax on them. After they return to Camelot, they are attacked. Merlin uses his magic, and Arthur uses a stun gun, to defeat the heroes. Arthur states that they are but bait to win him eternity. He reveals himself to actually be Vandal Savage. The villain tells Superman that this was just a trap designed to put him in Savage's power. Superman must surrender his life so that Vandal Savage can live forever.

Note 1: Vandal Savage travels from the 20th century back to the 6th century and poses as King Arthur.

*************************************

ALL-STAR COMICS #65 (Mar-Apr 1977)
"The Master Plan Of Vandal Savage"

Superman and Power Girl break out of their prison just as Camelot fades. The two heroes find themselves on a futuristic world. Back in Camelot, the Flash has freed the real King Arthur. Arthur explains that Savage had used his power to enchant them all... even Merlin, whose sorcery he has used to open the veil of time. The Flash begins his search for his Kryptonian teammates.

An image of Vandal Savage appears before Superman and Power Girl. Savage blasts Power Girl into unconsciousness and steals her away. Superman loses his powers, and discovers that they are now on a world with twin green suns... kryptonite suns! In his laboratory, Savage has bound the still unconscious Power Girl to a table. He states that after his last defeat, he became convinced he could not regain his immortality naturally, so he built this world to steal it back. Savage's robot servants beat Superman into unconsciousness and bring him to an arena.

Superman awakens to find Vandal Savage standing over him. Savage tells Superman that he has been weakened to the point of being an ordinary mortal. Savage is going to steal Superman's superhuman lifeforce and use it to restore his immortality. Merlin watches the two men fight on a viewscreen. The wizard states that because Vandal Savage is concentrating all his strength on battling Superman, his hold over Merlin has been broken. He does not know how long he will be free, so he must act while he can. Merlin frees Hawkman, but is then discovered by one of Savage's robots. The robot teleports the wizard back to Camelot. Hawkman frees the Star-Spangled Kid, and the two heroes head to the arena.

Hawkman distracts Savage, while the Star-Spangled Kid creates a special suit to protect Superman from the kryptonite solar rays. When Savage still appears to be stronger than Superman, the Kid realizes that the villain must be draining power from Power Girl. The Kid rescues Power Girl, enabling Superman to beat Savage. While Superman deals with attacking robots, Savage flees. Superman follows, but he is unable to reach Savage before the villain disappears into a space warp, having been rescued by his Injustice Society teammates.

Note 1: Vandal Savage travels 20,000 light years to a planet with two green kryptonite suns.

Vandal Savage has succeeded in altering history. He has now been the Emperor of the world for thousands of years. In this new reality, everyone knows that Superman is Clark Kent. Superman, Lex Luthor, and Lois Lane work for Savage. Jimmy Olsen and Dr. Klyburn are part of the Underground. Superman states that Savage has been good to the people for thousands of years, so he doesn't understand why the Underground fights them. When the Underground's mighty invasion force fails in their attack on Savage's castle, Jimmy is captured and interrogated. Perry White of 'The Savage Planet' newspaper says his readers will see Jimmy Olsen as the pitiful fool that he is.

Later, Lois helps Jimmy escape. She is a double-agent, but she doesn't know how much longer she can watch people be tortured and killed. Jimmy says they can't last much longer if Lois can't lure Superman over to their side. Suddenly, Superman bursts in, furious that Savage's suspicions about Lois were right. She insists that she loves him, and tells him that Savage has ruined their world.

Superman tells the story of Vandal Savage's history, and says that Savage was already ruler of the world when he arrived on Earth as an infant. He was discovered by the Kents, who turned him over to the Emperor when they realized his powers. Savage allowed the Kents to raise the child in his castle. He was taught to obey the law of the land, and to believe his Emperor. Lois asks that Superman give them a chance. He flies her around to other areas, where she points out oppression and despair everywhere they go. After more than an hour, Lois brings Superman to Perry White, who is also a double-agent and the editor of the Underground's 'Free Planet' paper. Lois and Perry convince Superman to change sides.

For an hour more they talk, then Superman and Lois appear before Savage. Superman asks to speak to his Emperor. Savage tells them to approach, then pulls out a disintegration gun invented by Luthor. He had planted a radio-transmitter in Superman's belt buckle, and overheard every traitorous word. Savage gives Superman one last chance to redeem himself by turning over Lois Lane and the other rebels, otherwise Savage will disintegrate him. Lois lunges at her oppressor, declaring that Superman will free the world from tyranny. Savage fires his weapon, disintegrating her. Superman tries to grab him, but the villain teleports away. Superman then grabs Luthor and forces him to talk. Luthor says that Savage has traveled back in time, and that Superman can't possibly find him now. Superman swears that Vandal Savage will pay for murdering the woman he loves.

Note 1: This story repeats the fact that Vandal Savage is a 50,000 year old caveman named Vandar Adg.
Note 2: This story repeats the claims that Vandal Savage was a king of ancient Sumer, Pharaoh Cheops, and Genghis Khan.

*************************************

ACTION COMICS #516 (Feb 1981)
"Time And Time Again!"

Luthor gives Superman a device that will glow as he nears whatever era Vandal Savage has fled to. Superman states that he has never actually traveled into the past before, but he's certain it's possible. He flies counter-clockwise around the Earth and breaks through the time barrier. Luthor secretly hopes that Superman defeats Savage. With all the secrets he's learned the past weeks, Luthor believes that with Savage out of the way, he shall take over as the new Emperor of Earth.

In Germany on June 6th, 1944, Vandal Savage appears before Adolph Hitler and his generals. Savage blasts the generals, then tells Hitler that he can help to win the war that very night. Savage's signal-alarm warns him that Superman has almost arrived, just as he planned. He tells Hitler that the Allies are attacking as they speak, but that he can destroy those military forces if Hitler appoints him Vice Chancellor of Nazi Germany. Hitler agrees to the proposition. Superman arrives in Normandy, France, as the Allies storm the beaches. A tidal wave appears, threatening to drown the Allied forces. Superman tries to stop the wave, but Savage has tricked the hero into activating the first of his time-bombs. Superman is rendered unconscious and the soldiers are destroyed. Savage declares that Germany will now win the war, then disintegrates Hitler with his gun.

Jimmy discovers Luthor viewing the events of Superman's battle with Savage. He is forced to tell Jimmy what he knows. Luthor had discovered that Savage wasn't always their Emperor. In fact, he only took control of the world seven days earlier! As Savage's chief scientist, Luthor was instructed to perfect a working time-machine. When he attempted to test the device, Luthor accidentally learned what really happened. Ages ago, when Savage was the king of ancient Sumer, his wizard revealed his future to him. The wizard explained to Savage that they live on one of many Earths. He showed Savage images depicting his future battles with the super-heroes, and his repeated defeats at their hands. When Savage asked the wizard if there was any way to change the future, the wizard told him that he couldn't change the future on the world of his birth, but he could change it on another Earth.

Luthor explains to Jimmy that Savage learned that he could change their timeline by planting several devices he called "time-bombs" in their past. The bombs would alter history, setting it in the direction that Savage wanted it to go. It wasn't possible for Savage to explode the bombs himself. He needed an energy-source powerful enough to trigger his bomb. That power didn't exist until the coming of Superman. Savage planted his most recent bomb months earlier, then set out to force Superman to use his super-energy. He created three volcanic emergencies. First Mount St. Helens, then in Lake Henry, and finally the previous week in Japan's Mount Fujiyama. Each time Superman fought to control those volcanoes, he expended energy which Savage stored. Superman's energy exploded Savage's first time-bomb, altering the modern world, instantly changing it into an Earth ruled by Vandal Savage!

However, Savage had succeeded only in changing modern history. He had to have Superman explode all of his time-bombs, or real history would soon catch up to him. Savage brought Lois Lane into his new castle, certain that Superman would fall in love with her. He needed that emotional commitment, so when Savage finally killed Lois, Superman would be willing to follow him back through time in order to exact revenge. As Superman flies back in time and uses his powers, he will unwittingly ignite the rest of Savage's bombs. Luthor states that when he learned the truth, he built two time-travel machines. He says he intended to stop Savage himself, but he believes that Jimmy would stand a better chance. Jimmy agrees, and uses Luthor's device to head back in time. Luthor laughs, for he left out one important fact. When he learned of Savage's plan, Luthor made an alteration in his final time-bomb. When it explodes, the bomb will destroy Savage, Jimmy, and Superman, leaving Luthor to become the Emperor of the Earth!

When Superman awakens in Normandy, he wonders aloud how Savage could have been prepared to attack him with a bomb. Jimmy appears and repeats everything that Luthor had told him. Superman and Jimmy head back to 1492, where flying dragons are attacking Columbus' three ships. The dragons explode when Superman strikes them, ending Columbus' voyage and making his ships vanish. Because Savage has had a lifetime to create his plan, Superman fails over and over again. In ancient Rome, Nero's fire is extinguished. In China, the great Han Dynasty collapses in ruin. Alexander the Great dies in fever at birth. The savage Mesopotamian warriors level the first great pyramid in Egypt's 3rd Dynasty. Every crossroad in history is changed, one by one.

Superman and Jimmy track Savage back to the Mesozoic Age, nearly 250 million years in the past. Superman believes he has figured out what the villain is up to. Savage is waiting for them, riding atop a pterodactyl, leading a herd of dinosaurs. He points to the sky at an approaching fireball, declaring that it is the very one that first turned him into an immortal. It has come to Earth-One, and when it strikes him again, Savage will become Master of the Earth. The villain says Superman won't be able to stop him because he'll be too busy battling the charging dinosaurs. Superman says he won't waste his time, and instead flies straight at the approaching fireball. Savage anticipates Superman's action, but is shocked when the hero turns away at the last moment. Superman states that Savage is already immortal, so he doesn't need to become immortal a second time. He realized that the villain wanted him to stop the fireball, because the energy would set off the final bomb. Jimmy watches in horror as the fireball disintegrates Savage. Superman states that the villain is an immortal, and that the fireball merely changed him into pure energy, a form he'll stay in the rest of all time.

Superman and Jimmy disappear. With Savage's final bomb undetonated, time returns to normal. Superman arrives back in Metropolis just in time to save Lois, who fell out of a skyscraper window as she was trying to open it.

Note 1: This story repeats the fact that Vandal Savage was a caveman named Vandar Adg.
Note 2: This story repeats the claim that Vandal Savage was a king of ancient Sumer. A wizard showed him his future, including his battles with the Justice Society and the existence of Earth-One.
Note 3: Vandal Savage appears to change into pure energy while attempting to renew his powers.

*************************************

ACTION COMICS #542 (Apr 1983)
"Savage Awakening!"

From his office in the Abraxas Corporation building, Vandal Savage watches Superman fly by his window. The villain says he has spent his life adapting and changing with each generation. When mages were the source of power, he wielded the powers mystic. In days when an Emperor's off-chance remark might cause an army to march into battle, he ruled upon the velvet thrones of countries large and small. But now, strength is no longer power. Today the seat of power has shifted to the men of mind. Today technology is power. Savage enters his laboratory as his scientists complete his latest accomplishment. He remarks that when he last met Superman, he was all but destroyed. Yet his body reconstructed itself and, with coffers only an immortal can acquire, he came to Earth and built a corporation he calls Abraxas. As he and his scientists watch, a container bursts open, revealing a robot duplicate of Superman! Over the next month, Savage builds any army of Supermen.

One day, Superman investigates explosions at Metropolis Electric. He arrives to find a half-dozen Superman robots tending to the problem. Using his x-ray vision, he determines that they are even more advanced than his old robots were. By the time Superman cleans up, the robots are gone. Superman says nothing to the public, so they assume that the robots belong to him.

The next day, the Abraxas Corporation reveals that they are responsible for the Superman robots. Time and again, the robots beat Superman to the scenes of crimes and disasters. When Superman attends the press conference of Abraxas, he is shocked to see that the spokesman is Vandal Savage. Being a stranger to the crowd, Savage says that he knows they must question his motives, so he asks that they let him explain. He tells them that he is from a parallel Earth, and that he was a bad man that did things he is ashamed of. He realized the error of his ways, but knew he couldn't stay where he was, so he came to this Earth to begin his life as a benefactor to mankind. His robots are his first means of redemption, designed to substitute for Superman when the hero is unavailable.

Superman flies down, calling Savage a liar. He says that whatever Savage is planning, he won't get away with it. Suddenly, Superman is blasted by a kryptonite ray. Savage says he wishes he could convince Superman with his words and deeds, but until he can he had to take such precautions. Savage claims he has reformed, as Superman shall learn. When the ray is shut off, Superman gets up and smashes the robots. Savage pleads with Superman to stop, claiming that they were created to help the people. He says he pinned all of his hopes of changing on Abraxas and the robots. He points out that Superman could have checked him out first instead of destroying them.

When Inspector Henderson and the police arrive, Superman tells Henderson to take Savage to prison. The inspector responds that Savage came to him for a permit for the press conference, and also said he thought Superman would attack him. Henderson says there are no records of Vandal Savage with the police, the FBI, CIA, Interpol, or anywhere else. The inspector adds that, if he wanted to, Savage could sue Superman for destruction of private property. Savage declines and leaves, saying he was just trying to help. People in the crowd ask Superman why he attacked, and why he destroyed the robots. They wonder if he is jealous. Superman flies off with no comment.

In his office, Savage laughs, for he has succeeded in the first step of his plan. He will slowly manipulate the public and change their opinion concerning Superman. It may not be in a day or even in a year, but one day it will change. As an immortal, he has all the time in the world.

*************************************

ACTION COMICS #543 (May 1983)
"Within These Hands -- Power!"

Superman attends the parole hearing for Neutron, and recommends that the villain be kept in prison. The parole board state that the psychiatrist's reports say he is now able to deal with the tragedy that spawned him, and they order his release. Shortly, Superman investigates an explosion and finds Neutron at the center of the mayhem. The hero stops Neutron from committing further destruction, and returns him to prison. On his way home, Superman passes the Abraxas Corporation building, and comments that Vandal Savage is another villain that feigned reform.

Later that day, Superman discovers that Neutron is free and destroying a building. The two battle while a crowd gathers. The people can't understand why Superman is fighting with Neutron. Lana Lang is on the scene, reporting that she is at a loss to explain why Superman chose to attack, or why he would be willing to be in contempt of court. Superman captures Neutron, as Inspector Henderson and Neutron's lawyer arrive. Superman is told that Neutron was hired to demolish the building. His lawyer wants to know why Superman didn't wonder why he was doing it instead of attacking him. The lawyer declares that Superman ignored the fact that his client was paroled, tried to interfere with his new livelihood, and also assaulted him without due cause. They will deliberate whether to sue, and are considering invoking a restraining order. Neutron gives Superman his card, which says "Neutron Nuclearonics, a Divison of Abraxas Industries". Lana reports that this is the second time in as many weeks that Superman has interfered with legal matters.

Superman flies to the Abraxas building and confronts Savage. He asks the villain what he is up to. Savage says he craves power and Superman is his way of acquiring it. That is why he set up Abraxas, a completely legal corporation, in order to gain that power through technological methods. He will achieve greatness, while Superman is reduced to a laughing-stock. Savage warns that their meeting is being videotaped, and that any display of vulgar physical force will be used against him. Superman asks Savage how he can just calmly tell him all this. The villain responds that Superman will never know if what he is seeing is something Savage is legally involved with, or simply some old-fashioned crime. Therefore, Superman will act as he always does, falling into Savage's trap, slowly making the citizens of Metropolis distrust him. Furious, Superman blasts the furniture in Savage's office with his heat vision. Savage declares that, based on Superman's reaction, he has already won.

*************************************

ACTION COMICS #552 (Feb 1984)
"Another Time! Another Death!"

Vandal Savage watches on a viewscreen as Superman tends to a building collapse. Superman discovers that large, prehistoric roots are responsible. The hero takes a sample back to his Fortress of Solitude. Savage's scientists inform the villain that the tests have been completed. Everything is in position. They state that Superman is almost a full carrier. The disease that they've infected him with will soon take him over completely. Savage declares that once it has, Superman and the world will belong to him.

Elsewhere, on the western coast of the United States, a group of "forgotten heroes" meet to discuss a serious situation. Rip Hunter and his Time Masters, Cave Carson, Animal Man, Congo Bill, Dolphin, Dane Dorrance of the Sea Devils, and Rick Flagg of the Suicide Squad have been brought together by Immortal Man. They learn that they all have encountered a strange pyramid during one of their adventures. In each case, the military interfered. Immortal Man shall lead the heroes in battle against Superman in order to save the world.

At the headquarters of Abraxas Inc., Savage's scientists commence with Operation: Creation! Superman will battle a menace he can't possibly relate to Savage. By the time he is done, Savage will control not only the Earth, but Superman as well. Suddenly, molten lava erupts in Metropolis Park. Superman stops the lava flow, then digs down deep into the Earth. Savage tells his scientists to activate the cultures. He remarks that the first time that Superman confronted him in Abraxas, the hero was secretly sprayed with special biotechnic cultures, which have been dormant until now. Savage kept him busy fighting false menaces until the cultures had a chance to take root.

Superman bores down until he reaches a cavern, where he finds a strange pyramid. The hero is suddenly blasted by sound waves, then the spores begin to grow at an accelerated rate. Superman is entangled in plants that haven't been seen in more than five million years. This plant life has been given artificial intelligence, controlled by Savage from several miles away. Superman and the plants rise up to the surface. The hero tries to fly into the sky, but he hits an invisible force-shield. A crowd watches as Superman fights the plants inside the domed barrier. However, the barrier keeps expanding, and it will soon take over all of Metropolis.

Back on the west coast, Immortal Man tells the others that Superman is the cause of the disaster that is currently striking Metropolis. The only way they can defeat the menace is to kill Earth's greatest hero!

*************************************

ACTION COMICS #553 (Mar 1984)
"The World At Time's End!"

Vandal Savage tells his scientists that his plans proceed exactly as he ordered. Superman is spreading prehistoric spores all throughout Metropolis Park. They've sealed Superman and the spores inside an impenetrable force-field. One of Savage's scientists comments that they do not know who built the time pyramids or what their actual purpose might be, but they were able to tap into their power and use it as Savage has commanded. Savage says that if all goes well, the planet Earth will soon be returned to prehistoric jungle.

Elsewhere, on the west coast, Immortal Man tells the gathered forgotten heroes about the origin of Vandal Savage, and how he was also present when the fireball arrived 50,000 years ago. (Immortal Man was later given the name "Klarn" in a post-Crisis story, so I shall use that name here for clarity's sake). Vandar Adg was a terrible warrior, and Klarn was his enemy. They had engaged in many battles. As always, Vandar Adg killed Klarn's men with savage ease. They would have fought again, had a mysterious fireball not intervened. Bathed in unearthly radiation, Vandar Adg became immortal. Although he was not directly hit by the radiation, Klarn found himself changed as well. He found a jewel from the fireball, took it as an ornament, and wore it from that moment on. Vandal Savage lived through the ages, and throughout all that time, Immortal Man was his enemy. However, his immortality was different from Savage's. If killed, Immortal Man would die like any man, but he would then be instantly reborn as someone new. In his various forms, he followed Savage, trying to rid the world of his evil.

Immortal Man learned that Vandal Savage has infected Superman with a time-seed, which will turn the Earth into a prehistoric nightmare. If the growth is allowed to flourish, it will mean the end of everything. He tried contacting the Justice League, but was unable to, so he turned to lesser known heroes for help. One way or another, they must stop Superman.

In Metropolis, Superman bursts through the force-field. He sees the plants are springing up everywhere, and knows he must figure out why. Suddenly, he receives a telepathic summons from Immortal Man, informing Superman that he himself is the cause of the trouble. Superman is told to follow directions to meet with Immortal Man and his allies.

As the Mayor gives an emergency press conference, Vandal Savage appears. He states that he is partially responsible, and adds that it is important that they let him try to help. He explains that Abraxas Incorporated is involved with highly technological scientific research. He claims that his scientists had monitored a bizarre time-flux due to unprecedented solar activity. This time-flux, centered in Metropolis Park, was causing a reverse evolutionary process. Simply put, time was running backward. Metropolis Park had become a prehistoric jungle, and it would spread and inundate all Metropolis unless something was done quickly. Abraxas managed to contain the time-reversal under a force-field, but Superman, in his zealous haste, shattered the field and thereby is causing the destruction of Metropolis. Mankind could have controlled time. Dinosaurs would have been reborn under Savage's shields. When they died, fossil fuel would have formed. America would have become energy sufficient once again. But no longer, thanks to Superman. When asked why Superman would do that, Savage responds that they can't know why an alien intelligence does anything; that aliens don't think like humans do.

Following Immortal Man's instructions, Superman has flown to the Sun and burns away the time spores. On Earth, Immortal Man tells the other heroes that they must destroy the time pyramids. The heroes search out the pyramids that they had once encountered. Dane Dorrance and Dolphin travel to the Bahama waters, Congo Bill and the Congorilla travels to Africa, Rick Flagg travels to Cambodia, and Animal Man travels to Brazil. In every case, the military stops them.

Superman returns to Earth and contains a group of dinosaurs in Metropolis. Immortal Man then summons him and the others back to their headquarters. Immortal Man fills Superman in on Savage's actions. He explains that Savage didn't build these pyramids, but is merely using them for his own needs. If they are to stop the prehistoric plague, they must destroy the pyramid that exists at the beginning of time. Superman joins Rip Hunter and his crew in Hunter's time sphere, then they head back to the creation of the Universe itself. Hunter and his crew fall into unconsciousness, so Superman exits the time sphere and heads into the blinding light. He spots the time pyramid and, forcing his way through barrier after barrier of violent energy, smashes into the structure.

In the present, Savage's machines are overloading due to some kind of power-feedback, more powerful than any nuclear bomb known on Earth. When Savage tells his scientists to do something, they say they can't because the pyramids no longer exist. The prehistoric jungle begins to vanish. In Immortal Man's headquarters, Rip Hunter's time sphere returns but Superman is missing. The heroes fear that Superman has been destroyed.

At the Pentagon, the military discuss the fact that the pyramids have simply vanished. They have checked with the other nations that harbored pyramids and they've all reported the same findings. All they knew was that the pyramids had been placed on the Earth during the time of the cavemen. Their purpose was unknown, and their power incredible. They note that a band of forgotten heroes somehow destroyed the pyramids before they could learn their purpose. Because of the alien nature of the pyramids, the governments of the world did not reveal their existence to the public. Now that they have been destroyed, the President has asked that they all forget the pyramids ever existed at all.

Note 1: This story repeats the fact that Vandal Savage is a 50,000 year old caveman named Vandar Adg.
Note 2: This story reveals that Immortal Man was originally from Earth-Two, and was an enemy of Vandal Savage 50,000 years ago. Immortal Man gained his powers from the same meteor as Vandal Savage.
Note 3: This story repeats the claims that Vandal Savage was a king of ancient Sumer, Pharaoh Cheops, and Genghis Khan.

*************************************

ACTION COMICS #554 (Apr 1984)
"If Superman Didn't Exist..."

The great Zandrian armada encircles the Earth. Now that their pyramids have done their job, the Earth will be an easy conquest. At the time of the cavemen, they had planted the power pyramids around the planet. They knew that, one day, the natives would find the pyramids and in their lust for violence they would destroy one or more of them. Once one is destroyed, they all detonate, creating an energy-field which destroys their capacity for violence. It eliminates the heroic ideal, rendering the natives docile and unimaginative.

Superman had destroyed the central pyramid which powered all the others, unknowingly triggering a wave of energy which rippled throughout all time. Superman vanished. The Justice League was no more. No warrior in any age ever raised a sword in battle. There was no mythology. There were no heroes. There was no war. Mankind settled in small villages, living off the land.

When the Zandrians invade, the very thought of resistance never enters the humans' minds... except for two small boys named Jerry and Joey. The boys try in vain to convince the others to fight back. Nobody listens to the crazy children who were always making up stories. The boys are inspired to create a drawing of a hero they call "Super Man". They dress in homemade costumes and try to inspire the other villagers.

The energy level of the power pyramids begins to decrease. The Zandrians know that if the belief in heroes continues to strengthen, this world will return to its previous reality. The boys convince the others to believe in the heroic ideal, and suddenly Superman reappears! Superman overpowers the aliens, only to discover that they are passive, weak creatures who are unable to commit violence themselves. In exchange for Superman's mercy, the aliens agree to free all the planets that they have captured over the ages. The world returns to its former state, and Superman returns home.

*************************************

ACTION COMICS #556 (June 1984)
"Endings"

Although Perry White is reluctant to print negative things about Superman, he knows that the Daily Planet will lose its credibility if they don't. None of Superman's friends can understand why he keeps doing the disgraceful things he has done the past few weeks.

Suddenly, the Laser Erasers attack Metropolis, calling out for Superman. The hero arrives and stops their rampage. He wonders if Vandal Savage is behind the mayhem. Some citizens of Metropolis are thankful, but others wonder if Superman just draws trouble to their city.

At Abraxas Incorporated, Savage watches the events on a viewscreen. He tells his scientists that although Superman destroyed his spores, that was never his ultimate goal. People are beginning to associate Superman with danger. Although it is too early for most to believe Superman is a villain, Savage has planted the seeds of distrust. It will take years, but eventually the Earth will regard Superman as its greatest threat. In his need to do right, Superman will abandon the Earth, then Savage will rule supreme.

While Superman is carrying a burning building, Savage activates Phase Five... the sonic disrupter. The devices amplify all sound around Superman, causing him to drop the structure. The ultrasonic noise is so piercing that Superman begins thrashing around, wreaking havoc everywhere. In front of the public, Savage's Superman robots arrive to "help" bring Superman under control. Someone in the crowd says that Superman should be arrested for destroying so much property. A policeman agrees and places Superman under arrest. A projection of Vandal Savage appears, harshly criticizing Superman. This further convinces some in the crowd that Superman is a menace.

Later, Superman stands before the Metropolis Criminal Court. The judge tells Superman that he will face a trial, but he is released until that time. Outside the courthouse, reporters speak with him. Lois Lane says a telephone poll indicates that the majority of Metropolis still backs him, but still questions his recent actions. Superman says that he currently has no comment, but it is time he earned their trust.

Superman spends some time in the Arctic wasteland, then goes to the Batcave to speak with Batman about a plan that he has devised. Late that night, as Clark Kent, he sneaks into the Daily Planet and plants a small device in the WGBS-TV control booth.

Later, Superman arrives at Abraxas Incorporated and confronts Vandal Savage. Savage warns Superman that he is videotaping everything, so if he is harmed everyone will know about it. Superman keeps pushing Savage to explain why he is doing the things he has been doing. The villain eventually tells Superman that he is in Savage's way, that he could spoil his plans. He played on the fact that Superman knew of his criminal past. He created the robots which he knew Superman would destroy. He paid Neutron to demolish a building, knowing Superman would attack him. He admits that he created the spores and made it look like Superman unleashed them, to further turn public opinion against him. And he created the Laser Erasers to link Superman's name with disaster.

Savage says he did it for the same reason that he can reveal his plans to Superman. The hero is predictable, while he is a scavenger who preys on predictability. Superman says he still doesn't understand why. Savage says it's simple. He is an immortal, which immediately makes him better than anyone else. He was born to rule. He failed to achieve that destiny on Earth-Two, but he knew he would not fail on Earth-One. Savage tells Superman that people are sheep who will follow anyone who seems equipped to lead. He says the people are fools, and it was simplicity to use the media to make Superman look like a fool too. Superman then reveals that he has been transmitting Savage's own recording of their meeting to station WGBS-TV. The public has been listening to their entire conversation. Superman leaves the building, and is greeted outside by a cheering crowd. When the police enter Savage's control room, he is gone.

Firestorm and Killer Frost are sent back to 6th century Camelot on Earth-Two in order to protect the Monitor's tuning fork from the Anti-Monitor's shadow demons. From a castle window, Vandal Savage observes as the Shining Knight confronts these strange intruders (the Shining Knight has clearly not yet been to the 20th century at this point in his timeline).

Note 1: It is unclear what Savage's role was in 6th century Camelot. His future self would later travel from the 20th century back to the 6th century, where he would briefly pose as King Arthur (see All-Star Comics #64).

*************************************

CRISIS ON INFINITE EARTHS #5 (Aug 1985)
"World's In Limbo"

Vandal Savage is among those individuals gathered together aboard the Monitor's satellite by Alexander Luthor, Harbinger, and Pariah.

Note 1: It is assumed that this is Vandal Savage from the 20th century and not from the 6th century (as seen in issue #4).

*************************************

CRISIS ON INFINITE EARTHS #9 (Dec 1985)
"War Zone"

Vandal Savage is among those villains gathered together aboard Brainiac's spacecraft.

Soon after, Vandar Adg is attacked
by the leader of the Hawk People. Vandar kills the attacker, who
would be reincarnated time and again to plague him. [Hawkman v3
#29 (Feb 1996), later retconned away]

Not long afterward, in
western Europe, when the tribal elders decide he is a threat and try to
have him killed, Vandar Adg destroys the elders. The other tribes
began calling them "The Blood People". [JSA Classified #11 (June
2006), story says "34,782 BC", but this is based on the later retcon of
Savage becoming immortal 37,000 years ago.]

45,000 years ago, a
few hundred years before the sinking of Atlantis, a ship-wrecked Vandal
Savage is rescued by Atlanteans. He soon gains a following, and a
valuable ally in Garn Daanuth, Arion's brother. Savage founds the
Brotherhood of the Light (the Illuminati). [Time Masters #6 (July
1990)]

45,000 years ago, years after the City of the Golden Gate
perished under the sea, Rip Hunter discusses Vandal Savage with
Arion. [Time Masters #7 (Aug 1990), incorrectly says 45,000 BC
instead of 45,000 years ago]

In 40,000 BC, the earliest known
battle occurs between Vandal Savage and the Resurrection Man in New
Gondwanaland. [DCU Villains Secret Files #1 (Apr 1999)]

34,000
years ago, Vandal Savage invents the carving knife. When his son
begins manufacturing them in an unearthly, bright green metal, Savage
has him put to death. [JSA Classified #13 (Aug 2006)]

20,000
years ago, Vandal Savage leads his clan out of Asia and across the
Bering Strait land bridge. Dakath of Mars slaughters all
4,000 of his people over a two month period. Savage, the lone
survivor, finally beheaded the beast. [JLA #84 (Early Oct 2003);
JLA #86 (Early Nov 2003)]

Around 9,600 BC, right around the time
of the Great Deluge, Vandal Savage battles an incarnation of
Resurrection Man in Atlantis. [DCU Villains Secret Files #1 (Apr
1999)]

Beginning in the 36th century BC???, Vandal Savage is a king in Sumeria.
[Flash #137 (June 1963)]

In
3,582 BC, in Sumeria, Vandal Savage kills the inventor of the wheel and
claims it as his own. [JSA Classified #10 (May 2006)]

Circa 2600 BC???,
Vandal Savage claims to have designed Stonehenge. [JLA: Year One #12 (Dec 1998)]

In
the 26th century BC, Vandal Savage is the Pharaoh Cheops (a.k.a.
Khufu). [Green Lantern #10 (Winter 1943)] Cheops is also
impersonated at some point by the wizard Kulak, but Savage regains
control and imprisons the pretender. [Justice Society Of America
v2 #10 (May 1993)]

In the 26th century BC, Vandal Savage poses as
the Khafre, son of Khufu, a Pharaoh in the 4th Dynasty. While
Bonnie Baxter time-travels to this era, she is aided by Nabu the
Wise. Nabu uses Bonnie's communicator to create the blue scarab,
which is used to defeat Khafre. Nabu uses a spell to bind him in a
sarcophagus. Neither Bonnie nor Nabu are aware that they have
actually buried a slave. [Time Masters #6 (July 1990), says "2578
BC, close to the end of Khafre's reign, about 30 years after the
completion of the Great Pyramid of Kheops, working on Khafre's pyramid
and the Sphinx right now"; Time Masters #7 (Aug 1990); Who's Who In The
DC Universe #4 (Nov 1990); JSA #42 (Jan 2003) says Savage ruled in 4th
Dynasty; JSA #43 (Feb 2003) says he was Pharaoh Kafre]

Vandal Savage
receives the Scarab of Khefri from Isis as a gift. [Arsenal #3 (Dec 1998)]

In
1,351 BC, at the behest of the modern day Vandal Savage, the
time-traveling Chronos steals a box from the Amazons and is lost in the
minotaur labyrinth in Knossos, Crete. He is rescued by a disguised
Rip Hunter, after which he returns the box to the Amazons. He
returns to the 20th century, telling Vandal Savage that he failed in his
task. [Legends Of The DC Universe 80-Page Giant #1 (Sep 1998)]

In
the 13th century BC, during the 19th Dynasty (the reign of Rameses II),
Vandal Savage controls Ahk-Ton the Metamorph with the Orb of Ra (stolen
from the Temple of Heliopolis), and encounters the time-traveling
Captain Marvel, Hawkgirl, and Mr. Terrific. Savage declares that
he will have his revenge on Nabu. The heroes team-up with Prince
Khufu Kha-Taar, Lady Chay-Ara, Nabu the Wise, and Teth-Adam.
Vandal Savage, Ahk-Ton, and their armies attack the heroes at the temple
city of Karnak. The heroes petition Ra for help, who arrives and
reduces Savage to infancy. [JSA #42 (Jan 2003) - #44 (Mar 2003);
incorrectly say 15th Dynasty, 19th correctly given in JSA #20 (Mar 2001)
- #22 (May 2001)]

In 1,210 BC, Vandal Savage fights beside Moses
as he led the Israelites out of Egypt. He nearly loses his life
to a Philistine armed with a shining green spear. [JSA Classified
#13 (Aug 2006), says "3200 years ago"]

In the 1st century BC, Vandal Savage is Gaius Julius
Caesar. He fakes his death at the hands of Brutus in 44 BC.
[Green Lantern #10 (Winter 1943)]

In the 1st century BC, Vandal
Savage claims to have been Julius Caesarâ€™s adopted son Octavian, a.k.a.
Augustus, and even had a hand in his death. [Salvation Run #4 (Apr
2008), this contradicts the pre-Crisis history of Vandal Savage as
Julius Caesar]

In the mid 2nd century AD, Savage obtained a
magical staff, made for him by Ptolemy, the greatest of Egyptian
sorcerers, to control the Space Gods. [Justice Society Of America
v1 #7 (Oct 1991)]

In the 4th century AD, Vandal Savage rules the
Roman Empire as the emperor Licinius. He is ultimately defeated in
a civil war against his co-regent Constantine at the battle of
Chrysopolis on September 18th, 324 AD. [JSA Classified #10
(May 2006), says "323 AD" and "within a year it was all over,
Constantine was sole Emperor of Rome"]

In 391 AD, Vandal Savage
survives the destruction of the Great Library of Alexandria, despite a
freak accident where an enormous, glowing green book strikes him on the
head. [JSA Classified #13 (Aug 2006), says "1600 years ago"]

In 6th century Camelot, Vandal Savage is present when the red skies appear. [Crisis On Infinite Earths #4 (July 1985)]

In
6th century Camelot, a time-traveling Vandal Savage arrives from the
20th century and briefly poses as King Arthur. [All-Star Comics
#64 (Jan-Feb 1977)]

In
the 13th century, Vandal Savage poses as Temujin a.k.a. Genghis
Khan. [Green Lantern #10 (Winter 1943); Note: The unpublished
"Will of William Wilson" establishes that the Flash met Genghis Khan
both as a boy and as an old man, proving that Savage could not have been
the actual Genghis Khan]

When Savage was France's court physician,
he used the Royal Family for syphilis experiments. [Flash v2 #14 (July 1988)]

In
the 16th century, Vandal Savage aided King Philip as SeÃ±or Savage
(a.k.a. VÃ¡ndalo Salvaje) against Sir Francis Drake. [Green Lantern
#10 (Winter 1943); Who's Who: Definitive Directory Of The DC Universe
#25 (Mar 1987), states that as Almirante (Admiral) VÃ¡ndalo Salvaje, he
led the Spanish Armada to defeat against Drake and the English.
All previous references to this event name him "SeÃ±or Savage".]

In
the early 18th century, Vandal Savage is Edward Teach a.k.a.
Blackbeard. In 1718 AD, Robert Maynard's forces soon capture
Blackbeard and hang his head from the bow of their ship, unaware that it
is actually one of his men named Smithy. [JSA Classified #11
(June 2006), says "1718 AD"]

In 1770 AD,
time-traveling Dan Hunter arrives in Pennsylvania, where he overhears
Illuminati agents. They mention that they no longer possess the
Grail, and state that it is a pity that Washington wouldn't join
them. Dan is captured, and is soon befriended by another prisoner
named Tomahawk. They escape, but fail to stop Vandal Savage's
agents from assassinating George Washington and replacing him with Adam
Weishaupt of Bavaria. [Time Masters #4 (May 1990)] After
receiving the report on Washington, Savage turns the discussion to the
role of France in the upcoming war. [Time Masters #5 (June 1990)]

On
September 16th 1874 AD, Rip Hunterâ€™s colleague Jeff Smith arrives in
Oaxaca, Mexico, right before Porfirio Diaz is elected for the first
time. Jonah Hex, Bat Lash, and Brian Savage (Scalphunter) are
hired as Diaz' bodyguards. Vandal Savage holds a meeting to
discuss Diaz upcoming victory, as well as Rutherford B. Hayes' victory
in 2 years. Jeff Smith fails in his attempt to kill Diaz.
[Time Masters #3 (Apr 1990)] Soon after, Vandal Savage is told of
the incident. Savage then turns his attention to the new German
empire. [Time Masters #4 (May 1990)]

In November
1876 AD, Samuel Jones Tilden wins the popular vote for President of the
United States, but the Illuminati see to it that Rutherford B. Hayes is
declared the winner. [Time Masters #3 (Apr 1990)]

In 1884
AD, Vandal Savage battles an incarnation of Resurrection Man in Londonâ€™s
Whitechapel district. [DCU Villains Secret Files #1 (Apr 1999),
it is implied here that Savage is Jack the Ripper, but the Ripper
murders occurred in 1888]

In 1887 AD, Vandal Savage threatens his
daughter, Annabeth, who is living in Little Baddow, England, with her
mother. [JSA Classified #12 (July 2006)]

In
late 1943 AD, Vandal Savage steals the birth certificate of Doiby
Dickles and attempts to use it to become War Labor Chief of the United
States. His plans are foiled by Green Lantern and the real Doiby
Dickles. [Green Lantern #10 (Winter 1943)]

In mid
1947 AD, The Wizard enlists the Brain Wave, the Gambler, Per Degaton,
the Thinker, and Vandal Savage to form the Injustice Society of the
World. [All-Star Comics #37 (Oct-Nov 1947)]

Osgood PeabodyMember

posted March 18, 2013 01:04 PM

So apparently both Vandal Savage and Lex Luthor have been blamed for the San Francisco earthquake - perhaps it was a joint venture?

Outpost2Member

posted March 18, 2013 11:52 PM

How was Lex around in 1906? A time-travel story?

Osgood PeabodyMember

posted March 19, 2013 08:08 PM

Yes - in "Luthor, Super-Hero" (Superman #168), the middle part of the epic Lexor trilogy, Lex winds up traveling back to 1906 San Francisco.

It's a great story, but inexplicably has never been reprinted, so I can understand why you're unfamiliar with it.

Outpost2Member

posted April 14, 2013 07:50 PM

The Day After Doomsday

House Of Secrets #86 (June-July 1970) (reprinted in Weird War Tales #36)
"The Day After Doomsday..."The
bombs fell on Wednesday... by Friday the world was still. The
glowing rain ceased late in the afternoon. Neither clouds nor
birds filled the crimson sky. Sometime the following Tuesday, a
man digs himself out of the wreckage on West 47th Street. He looks
around in disbelief, declaring himself the last man on Earth. As
he walks down what remains of the street, he is suddenly fired
upon. He dives behind the ruins, and discovers that it is a woman
that is shooting at him. He tries to befriend her, but she doesn't
trust him at first. He finally convinces her that they must
rebuild the world together. He introduces himself as Adam.
She says her name is Gertrude. The last man and woman on Earth
walk hand-in-hand off toward the sunset.

The Witching Hour #9
(June-July 1970) (reprinted in Weird War Tales #22)"The Day After Doomsday..."
A tattered soldier walked the streets for days, searching for food,
shelter and, above all, people. Finally, he spots someone else
alive in the distance. They run towards each other, but joy
quickly turns to hate as they recognize each other as enemies. The
two men fight, then both pull their guns and fire. The city is at
peace again. A third man arrives a few hours later, examines the
soldiers' still bodies, and wonders what could have been so important
that they would kill each other. He lived too long in the ruins to
remember such things as patriotism and honor. He only remembers
the hunger and the loneliness. He walks away, wondering if his
side won.

House Of Secrets #95 (Dec 71-Jan 72)"The Day After Doomsday..."
Adam and Gertrude search the ruins for food. Gertrude says she can't
take the horrible silence anymore -- day after day with no laughter or
music or singing. Suddenly, Gertrude spots a music box. She
gleefully tries to show Adam, but he is more concerned with gathering
cans of food. She opens the box, but discovers that it doesn't
work. She discards the box and helps Adam carry away more
cans. After they leave, the music box plays some notes until the
spring runs down.

House Of Secrets #97 (Apr-May 1972)"The Day After Doomsday..."
Adam shouts to Gertrude that he has found another food can under the rubble,
although he is disappointed that it is asparagus. Gertrude calls
to Adam, telling him to come see what she has found. It is a
flower, growing in the shadow of a shattered building. Adam says
that if a flower can grow, then they can grow their own food. They
can start fresh. Then, without warning, the wall of the building
collapses, crushing them.

Weird War Tales #22 (Feb 1974) (reprints
Witching Hour #9)

Weird War Tales #23 (Mar 1974)"Day After Doomsday!"
A man searches the ruins for food. He spots something half-buried
in some wreckage. It is a candy machine! He doesn't have
dimes for the machine, so he starts beating on it. Finally,
something is jarred loose. Gears and levers fall into place, then
dozens of dimes fall out. The machine is full of money, but empty
of food.

Weird War Tales #30 (Oct 1974)"The Day After Doomsday!"
As a man sits alone in a room, there is a knock at the door. He
grabs his gun and moves cautiously to the door. He goes outside,
but there is nobody in sight. He finds a letter lying on the
ground. He opens it and reads, then begins laughing. He
tears the letter in half and discards it. It was from his local
draft board. He had been ordered to appear for induction on Friday
April 26th. He is relieved because he thought he was 4-F.

Weird War Tales #32 (Dec 1974)"The Day After Doomsday!"Mr.
and Mrs. Ian Jones tend to their farm in rural Great Britain.
Mrs. Jones is feeding the chickens, when Ian asks her to walk down to
the well with him to fetch some water. Soon they will have enough
butter and egg money saved up for their big trip to London. They
drink the cool water, wondering why the weather has been so continually
hot. They both suddenly realize that something is very
wrong. They run back to the house, but they don't make it.
The water from the well had been contaminated by deadly radiation,
causing them to shrink down and down and down. One of their
chickens stands menacingly in their path.

Weird War Tales #35 (Mar 1975)
"The Day After Doomsday!"Long
ago, a man stopped looking for survivors. He is convinced he is
the only one left, and he knows he won't last much longer. He
grabs a pickaxe to take on his final quest. He calls upon the last
of his strength and uses the weapon to smash the door of the nearest
bank. He had always been poor, but now he had all the money he
wanted. He knew it was worthless now, but he could still
dream. He collapses from a heart attack, having one final moment
of joy before he dies.

Weird War Tales #36 (Apr 1975) (reprints
House Of Secrets #86)

Weird War Tales #40 (Aug 1975)"The Day After Doomsday!"
A man walks the shattered ruins for days. He locates another food
can, but wonders if he should just throw it away and give up.
Suddenly he stumbles upon a miracle -- a plate-glass window, without a
scratch or flaw. He contemplates all that must have happened in
front of this window, before everything was destroyed. He then
throws a brick through the window, smashing it to pieces. He
realizes he doesn't have time for such memories anymore.

Weird War Tales #42 (Oct 1975)The Day After Doomsday: "The Year 700 After The Bomb!"
An oddly dressed man walks through Lacy's department store in New York
City. When security guards try to take him to the security office,
he initially resists, but then accompanies them upstairs. When
asked about his medieval clothes, he introduces himself as Barry of
Bleeker Street. He states that he is here against his will, but
that they will not believe his story. He explains that, 700 years
after the bomb, the mighty Emperor of Weehawken will send his hordes
across the Hudson river, and conquer the island kingdom of Manhattan for
the third time. Barry was a soldier in the defeated army, and he
avoided the city and wandered the ruins where the soldiers were fewer in
number. As he wondered aloud about the 20th century, an old hag
appeared. She promised to grant his wish in exchange for a bite of
cheese. After swallowing the cheese, she spoke the words "kuzartu
zam", then told him that the spell would take a while to work.
She said that if he doesn't like it -- back it. She left Barry to
ponder her words. At that moment, he saw two soldiers trying to
steal food from a street urchin. Barry helped drive away the
soldiers, but the boy ran off. The boy disappeared into a hole in
the ground.

Weird War Tales #43 (Nov-Dec 1975)"The Year 700 After The Bomb!"
In the year 1974, Barry of Bleeker Street continues telling his tale to
the security staff of Lacy's department store. He describes events
that occur 700 years after the bomb. The street urchin he had
been following escaped down a shaft. The boy called to Barry to
follow him. The boy introduced himself as Jak of Chelsea, and led
Barry to the grocery section of what was once Lacy's. They ate
canned food, then the boy showed Barry the wondrous items that
surrounded them. When Jak's crude alarms indicated that the
soldiers were near the entrance to the shaft, Jak disappeared
momentarily. The "boy" emerged in a dress, revealing that he was
actually a woman named Jakki. She went back to the surface to lead
the soldiers away. Barry followed and inadvertently sprung the
trap that she had set for them, knocking himself out. When he came
to hours later, the soldiers and Jakki were gone.

Weird War Tales #44 (Jan-Feb 1976)
"The Emperor Of Weehawken" (A Day After Doomsday Epic)Barry
continues telling his tale of the feudal society that exists 700 years
after the bomb. He returned to Jakki's secret place to plan her
rescue. He tried to learn to use some of the ancient magic found
in the ruins of Lacy's department store. Weeks later, at the
palace of the Emperor, twelve pretty slaves were selected to serve
dinner at the banquet for the visiting King of Pittsburgh. Jakki
was one of the chosen. As she walked towards the dining hall, she
spotted Barry dressed as one of the Emperor's soldiers. Unaware of
his rescue plan, she believed he had betrayed her. A minute
later, a guard rushed in proclaiming that there were Manhattan soldiers
on their parapets. In the confusion, Barry forced Jakki to come
with him. He put her on his shoulders and raced away on
rollerskates. After the soldiers discovered that the invaders were
merely mannequins, they headed back and discovered Barry and
Jakki. The soldiers spread grease on the floor to prevent him from
racing away. The rifle Barry was using as a club accidentally
fired and blasted the chandelier. It crashed to the floor and set
the hall on fire. Barry and Jakki escaped in the confusion.
They returned to the underground hideaway, but there was now a price on
his head. Just as they were settling in together, Jakki
disappeared right before his eyes. He found himself in the same
room in Lacy's, but back in 1974. Barry quickly realized that the
old hag's spell had worked. The security chief mockingly tells
Barry to prove his story. The chief says the old hag's words "if
you don't like it, back it" obviously meant that he could reverse the
spell by repeating it backwards. Barry says the words "maz
utrazuk" and disappears.

Weird War Tales #46 (May-June 1976)
"The Day After Doomsday!"In
remote areas, far from the cities, there were survivors. Years
passed, and generations came and went. One day, a mother sits down
for muskrat stew dinner with her son and daughter (Becky Jean).
She tells her children that their father is out hunting for food.
The truth is he is fighting to protect his wife and children, and the
wives and children of the six or seven other men who live in the
valley. He shoots and kills another city dweller. The ones
that come from the city don't just act crazy, they have become babbling,
homicidal maniacs. And they are coming more frequently. The
father fears that sooner or later they're going to get through and kill
them all, but at least he has stopped one more.

Weird War Tales
#47 (July-Aug 1976)"The Day After Doomsday"A
lone survivor wanders aimlessly through the ruins. He has managed
to find food and shelter, but he wonders what good it is if he is
alone. He hesitates when he hears a female voice calling for help,
but as the voice continues his joy grows. He follows the sound of
the voice to some rubble, and begins digging. He is devastated to
discover that it is just a tape recording of some radio program.
He furiously pounds on the recorder. It is enough to loosen the
delicately balanced side of a bombed-out building. The wall falls
over, killing him.

Weird War Tales #48 (Sep-Oct 1976)
"The Day After Doomsday!"Months,
years, perhaps even decades have passed since the nuclear war. A
young scout is unwilling or unable to accept that this is the end.
He manages to find food and take care of himself, but he can't bear the
loneliness. He concludes that a pet could provide some
companionship, and heads to a nearby zoo. He reaches his
destination... the monkey exhibit. He hears their screeching and
realizes that they have somehow survived. He enters the cage,
unaware that the creatures have been driven quite mad. And they
are hungry.

Weird War Tales #49 (Nov-Dec 1976)"The Day After Doomsday!"
A bored boy named Johnny sits in the ruins of a soda shop.
Suddenly, the silence is curtailed by the sounds of a rock band warming
up. He locates the trio of musicians, playing atop a hill of
rubble, who appear to be glowing. He gets closer to enjoy the
performance, not noticing that it is getting warmer and warmer. He
realizes that their electric guitars aren't plugged in, and that they
are being powered by the radioactive bodies of the musicians
themselves. It only takes a few more minutes for Johnny to
die. The mutated minstrels, having lost their audience, pack up
and head to the next town.

Weird War Tales #53 (May 1977)
"The Day After Doomsday!"When
the bombs first fell in Washington D.C. and Moscow, a man was heading
down an elevator shaft to a spot almost a mile beneath the
surface. He digs his way back up and observes the ruins of
Grafton, West Virginia. He was responsible for dozens of deaths
himself, for he had barricaded himself in an airtight compartment and
ignored other's pleas for help. The man makes his way back to his
house. He knew this disaster would happen some day, so he had
taken precautions. He prays that his wife, Annie, and his children
are safe in their bomb shelter. He opens the thick shelter door,
then seals himself inside. It is then that he smells the poisonous
gas from a broken gas line that had filled the chamber. As he
dies, he sees the still bodies of his wife and children.

Weird War Tales #64 (June 1978)"The Day After Doomsday"John
W. Kelvin, president of Kelvin Armaments, supplies weapons to numerous
countries. By 1985, every world power has stockpiles of Kelvin
super-weapons. John Kelvin has every reason to worry about
surviving the threatening total war. He spends millions having his
scientist, Sherlaw, develop a suspended animation device. It is a
shelter not only against the bombs, but against fallout, sickness,
chaos, and time itself. They are a mile underground, and the lab
is completely contained. Two men can be kept alive, frozen for 250
years. They have oxygen, freeze-dried food, medicine, gold, and
other things for when they awaken. Suddenly, Kelvin receives a
message from the Pentagon. Unmarked Kelvin bombers are flying over
the North Pole towards the United States. They need him to supply
them with technical data on the planes. Instead, he orders
Sherlaw to prepare the freezers. When Sherlaw resists, insisting
that they help the Pentagon, Kelvin bashes him over the head and enters
the freezer alone. Five centuries later, Kelvin is revived.
Sherlaw's skeleton lies on the floor. After verifying that the
outside air is safe, Kelvin takes an elevator to the surface. He
is immediately executed by the people of 2485 for crimes against
humanity. He falls at the base of a monument, erected so that
mankind would remember the man who doomed the world. It reads: "In
Memoriam, John W. Kelvin, 1933-2485, who caused the Third World War".

Weird War Tales #68 (Oct 1978)"The Day After Doomsday"He
digs his way up from the cold, choking debris. He sets about the
business of survival. He staggers through the rubble-filled city,
wondering if others survived. Then he finds them... other
cockroaches just like him. They have found a dead human upon which
to feed.

Weird War Tales #69 (Nov 1978)"The Day After Doomsday"
Major Preston was a man who thrived on war. Other wars had long since
burned Earth bare, yet man's lust for war flared again. Major
Preston orders his Captain to fire their missiles. Suddenly, they
are themselves bombed. When Preston and his men wake up, they soon
realize that they must have been unconscious for centuries. They
discover that the world is now inhabited by wild mutants. They
spot an odd-looking plane flying east, so they head in that
direction. After walking for two weeks, they are attacked by
hundreds of mutants. Only four of the men survive. While his
men sleep, Preston abandons them and heads out on his own.
Eventually, he comes upon a large city. He soon discovers that it
is covered by a force field. Preston tries to blast his way in,
but finally collapses from hunger and thirst. When he awakens, he
finds himself in a lab surrounded by men. They tell him he carries
a plague, the same that infects the mutants. Preston lashes out
at them. They calm him down and tell him that he is right about
having slept for centuries. When Preston asks who won the war, one
of the men tell him that war was outlawed hundreds of years ago.
Preston sleeps, intent on starting plans of conquest in the
morning. He awakens in a prison cell. Preston is to be
isolated for the rest of his life so that the plague doesn't
spread. The plague's name is violence.

The Unexpected #215
(Oct 1981)"The Day After Doomsday"A
man wanders through the ruins looking for survivors. He finds it
ironic that he carries a gun, the symbol of man's destruction. He
decides to discard his weapon. Shortly, he hears a woman calling
for help. She is surrounded by a pack of hungry dogs. He
instinctively reaches for the gun in his holster, but it is gone.
By the time he locates it and fires upon the dogs, the woman is dead.

The Unexpected #221 (Apr 1982)"The Day After Doomsday"A
group of six scientist astronauts (Robert, Jeff, Al, Karen, Abby, and
an unnamed female... and Richard and David!) return to Earth after a
five-year mission in deep space. They had lost radio contact, and
thus were forced to manually guide their ship to a splash-down off the
coast of Hawaii. They soon discover the destruction caused by a
nuclear war, and fear that they are the only survivors. It is up
to them to rebuild the human race. They had been experimenting
with speeding up evolution by mechanical means, and were successful with
plants and animals. Karen suggests they have an opportunity to
try it with their own offspring. It doesn't take long before some,
like Abby, become uncomfortable with the loveless, clinical plans to
reproduce. Months later, three children are born and are placed in
the constricting forms of iron wombs. By fall, their children
will be accelerated to adulthood. Disgusted, Abby decides to leave
the island, leaving the incubators unattended for an extra week.
That extra week produces a group of evolved humans... not just the
original three, but dozens more who were created in a matter of
hours. The evolved men and women abandon their cold-hearted
parents, leaving them to their own devices.

Weird War Tales #123
(May 1983)"The Day After Doomsday!"Many
of the clan were lost in the nuclear storm, but they ultimately
survived. They will work together to rebuild. Thankfully,
their enemy was destroyed. One of the clan surveys the wreckage of
a sunken submarine, then returns to his fellow dolphins.

House Of Mystery #318 (July 1983)"The Day After Doomsday"A
man and woman decide they can manage some primitive existence if they
can pool their resources with other survivors. They soon discover a
functioning robot head. The man states that he is a computer
engineer and that robots were one of his specialties. Once he gets
it put together, he can program it to find food and build shelter --
maybe even locate other humans. When the robot is completed, the
man turns it on. It commences its mission -- the destruction of
organic beings. The robot, a product of the Government Computer
Project Warrior Robots Division, kills the two humans, then searches for others.